Also, the narrative that the investigation was initiated to help Crooked H win is kind of undercut by the fact that no one mentioned it till after the election.....

I don't particularly care for the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary win - who's pedaling that by the way - but for arguments sake how do you figure that works? How does not mentioning it until after the election undercut the claim? If we assume that it was initiated for that purpose the matter of when it was mentioned is irrelevant.

Cause if they iniated it to help Hillary, why didn't they actually do anything with it to help Hillary?

Unless you don't think publicising the fact that at least two prominent former members of Trump's team (Manafort & Page) were under active investigation by intellegence services for links to a foreign power would have cost Trump votes.

The FISA court might have taken a dim view of that. Anyway that whole line doesn't hang together as far as I can see.

Also, the narrative that the investigation was initiated to help Crooked H win is kind of undercut by the fact that no one mentioned it till after the election.....

I don't particularly care for the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary win - who's pedaling that by the way - but for arguments sake how do you figure that works? How does not mentioning it until after the election undercut the claim? If we assume that it was initiated for that purpose the matter of when it was mentioned is irrelevant.

Cause if they iniated it to help Hillary, why didn't they actually do anything with it to help Hillary?

Unless you don't think publicising the fact that at least two prominent former members of Trump's team (Manafort & Page) were under active investigation by intellegence services for links to a foreign power would have cost Trump votes.

The FISA court might have taken a dim view of that. Anyway that whole line doesn't hang together as far as I can see.

Yeah, but if the object was to aid Hillary rather than actually pursue a conviction, the FISA court doesn't matter all that much.

There are a bunch of reasons why the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary doesn't hold water, but for me the fact that anyone connected to it never did a damn thing to actually try and influence the election is the most obvious and clear.

Also, the narrative that the investigation was initiated to help Crooked H win is kind of undercut by the fact that no one mentioned it till after the election.....

I don't particularly care for the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary win - who's pedaling that by the way - but for arguments sake how do you figure that works? How does not mentioning it until after the election undercut the claim? If we assume that it was initiated for that purpose the matter of when it was mentioned is irrelevant.

Cause if they iniated it to help Hillary, why didn't they actually do anything with it to help Hillary?

Unless you don't think publicising the fact that at least two prominent former members of Trump's team (Manafort & Page) were under active investigation by intellegence services for links to a foreign power would have cost Trump votes.

The FISA court might have taken a dim view of that. Anyway that whole line doesn't hang together as far as I can see.

Yeah, but if the object was to aid Hillary rather than actually pursue a conviction, the FISA court doesn't matter all that much.

There are a bunch of reasons why the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary doesn't hold water, but for me the fact that anyone connected to it never did a damn thing to actually try and influence the election is the most obvious and clear.

I think you might be undermining your position there. it is conceivable, for example, that the investigation might have been started to do both: help and convict.

if so there woulld be contradictory imperatives in play at different times.

Also, the narrative that the investigation was initiated to help Crooked H win is kind of undercut by the fact that no one mentioned it till after the election.....

I don't particularly care for the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary win - who's peddling that by the way - but for arguments sake how do you figure that works? How does not mentioning it until after the election undercut the claim? If we assume that it was initiated for that purpose the matter of when it was mentioned is irrelevant.

Trump himself peddled it in the previously quoted, well thought out tweet."Why did the Obama Administration start an investigation into the Trump Campaign (with zero proof of wrongdoing) long before the Election in November? Wanted to discredit so Crooked H would win."

Sam Nunberg (former advisor and Stone apprentice) had a meltdown on 2-3 different channels about his grand jury subpaoena. Quite funny.

“I think it would be funny if they arrest me.”

This will definitely end well for him.

Just listening to his phonecall with CNN now... just a little unhinged there.

If he doesn't turn up...Mueller's team will be knocking/picking his lock early one morning soon (think what happened to Manafort.) Then they will happily track all his emails and phone records from his confiscated appliances.Whilst he's sitting in a cell somewhere. Going to end very well for him all right.

Also, the narrative that the investigation was initiated to help Crooked H win is kind of undercut by the fact that no one mentioned it till after the election.....

I don't particularly care for the idea that the investigation was started to help Hillary win - who's peddling that by the way - but for arguments sake how do you figure that works? How does not mentioning it until after the election undercut the claim? If we assume that it was initiated for that purpose the matter of when it was mentioned is irrelevant.

Trump himself peddled it in the previously quoted, well thought out tweet."Why did the Obama Administration start an investigation into the Trump Campaign (with zero proof of wrongdoing) long before the Election in November? Wanted to discredit so Crooked H would win."

Of all the arseholes on (or formerly on) the Trump bandwagon I think Nunberg is my new favourite. That is some absolutely top grade melting down. I look forward to hearing more from this man, although I suspect it's going to be tough to top this effort.

Of all the arseholes on (or formerly on) the Trump bandwagon I think Nunberg is my new favourite. That is some absolutely top grade melting down. I look forward to hearing more from this man, although I suspect it's going to be tough to top this effort.

Is 'Nunberg' the way GWB would pronounce 'Nothingburger'?

As in, "Yo, Blair, so ya think these WMDs in Iraw a a nunberg or what?"

Some of the things he's said about gun control are a very small step in the right direction, sure.

But there are a couple of qualifiers of course -

1 - He's a compulsive liar and you can't accept any assurances or claims at face value. 2 - The gun control debate is so f'ed up that even if he had a genuine desire to do something (and I don't believe he has any desire to do anything that doesn't directly benefit him) he'd probably by stymied by the GOP & NRA lobbyists. It would take a great deal of dedication, patience and will for a president to actually achieve something meaningful on that front and while Trump has a great deal of will, he has miniscule levels of the other two attributes.

Yeah, see that's so over the top and reactive that you can basically just dismiss it as Blowhard Trump talking shit again. It's essentially worthless because it's entirely a reaction to whatever he heard in the meeting or just beforehand and he'll change his mind 5 minutes later.

It's him talking to an audience and he's been flattered beforehand. He might actually think that, I don't know, I suspect he might actually be kind of sane when it comes to guns, but he just loves playing to an audience.

33 rules have been overturned:Flood building standardsProposed ban on a potentially harmful pesticideFreeze on new coal leases on public landsMethane reporting requirementAnti-dumping rule for coal companiesDecision on Keystone XL pipelineDecision on Dakota Access pipelineThird-party settlement fundsOffshore drilling ban in the Atlantic and ArcticBan on seismic air gun testing in the AtlanticNorthern Bering Sea climate resilience planRoyalty regulations for oil, gas and coalInclusion of greenhouse gas emissions in environmental reviewsPermit-issuing process for new infrastructure projectsGreen Climate Fund contributionsEndangered species listingsHunting ban on wolves and grizzly bears in AlaskaProtections for whales and sea turtlesReusable water bottles rule for national parksNational parks climate orderEnvironmental mitigation for federal projectsCalculation for “social cost” of carbonPlanning rule for public landsCopper filter cake listing as hazardous wasteMine cleanup ruleSewage treatment pollution regulationsBan on use of lead ammunition on federal landsRestrictions on fishingFracking regulations on public landsMigratory bird protectionsDepartment of Interior climate policiesRule regulating industrial pollutersSafety standards for “high hazard” trains

24 rollbacks are in progress:Clean Power PlanParis climate agreementCar and truck fuel-efficiency standardsOffshore oil and gas leasingStatus of 10 national monumentsStatus of 12 marine areasLimits on toxic discharge from power plantsCoal ash discharge regulationsEmissions standards for new, modified and reconstructed power plantsEmissions rules for power plant start-up and shutdownSage grouse habitat protectionsRegulations on oil and gas drilling in some national parksOil rig safety regulationsRegulations for offshore oil and gas exploration by floating vesselsDrilling in the Arctic Wildlife RefugeHunting method regulations in AlaskaRequirement for tracking emissions on federal highwaysEmissions standards for trailers and glider kitsLimits on methane emissions on public landsPermitting process for air-polluting plantsUse of birds in subsistence handicraftsCoal dust ruleHaze rule for national parksReview process for forest restoration projects

33 rules have been overturned:Flood building standardsProposed ban on a potentially harmful pesticideFreeze on new coal leases on public landsMethane reporting requirementAnti-dumping rule for coal companiesDecision on Keystone XL pipelineDecision on Dakota Access pipelineThird-party settlement fundsOffshore drilling ban in the Atlantic and ArcticBan on seismic air gun testing in the AtlanticNorthern Bering Sea climate resilience planRoyalty regulations for oil, gas and coalInclusion of greenhouse gas emissions in environmental reviewsPermit-issuing process for new infrastructure projectsGreen Climate Fund contributionsEndangered species listingsHunting ban on wolves and grizzly bears in AlaskaProtections for whales and sea turtlesReusable water bottles rule for national parksNational parks climate orderEnvironmental mitigation for federal projectsCalculation for “social cost” of carbonPlanning rule for public landsCopper filter cake listing as hazardous wasteMine cleanup ruleSewage treatment pollution regulationsBan on use of lead ammunition on federal landsRestrictions on fishingFracking regulations on public landsMigratory bird protectionsDepartment of Interior climate policiesRule regulating industrial pollutersSafety standards for “high hazard” trains

24 rollbacks are in progress:Clean Power PlanParis climate agreementCar and truck fuel-efficiency standardsOffshore oil and gas leasingStatus of 10 national monumentsStatus of 12 marine areasLimits on toxic discharge from power plantsCoal ash discharge regulationsEmissions standards for new, modified and reconstructed power plantsEmissions rules for power plant start-up and shutdownSage grouse habitat protectionsRegulations on oil and gas drilling in some national parksOil rig safety regulationsRegulations for offshore oil and gas exploration by floating vesselsDrilling in the Arctic Wildlife RefugeHunting method regulations in AlaskaRequirement for tracking emissions on federal highwaysEmissions standards for trailers and glider kitsLimits on methane emissions on public landsPermitting process for air-polluting plantsUse of birds in subsistence handicraftsCoal dust ruleHaze rule for national parksReview process for forest restoration projects